Friday, December 21, 2007

Top Ten

Everyone has TOP TEN lists this time of year—top ten movies, top ten singers, etc. There are so many they have little meaning any more.

I have always a done a top ten best things that happened in the last year, no not climbing Mt. Everest or winning a Pulitzer award, just ten things that made the last year special. Think about it, you more than likely will think of more than ten things in your life that should be remembered and commemorated.

Years ago I had a staff member who started to compile a list at my suggestion. The next day she came to me all distraught because she had only won 7 writing awards in the prior year and could not think of three more accomplishments! I reminded her that she had helped teens write stories, giving them confidence in their own words. She had gotten married on a mountain top in the snow! And those were just two of many special times and accomplishments. I am keeping my personal list to myself, but the Library TOP TEN is hard to narrow down to ten!

So what is my TOP TEN list for 2007? One is very obvious,

1. The Grand Opening of the Southside Branch Library to thousands of community members.

2. The Parade bringing new books to the new Library with the Mayor in the cab of a 16 wheeler and school children cheering as their Library books rolled by on the truck.

3. The hugs of Friends of the Library when they saw what they had accomplished in raising money for the Library.

4. The words of the Ohkay Owingeh prayers for the new Library.

5. The Children of the Portal Native American Artists at their annual exhibit and sale, thanking the Library for hosting them; what talented children.

6. The gifted Taos Pueblo hoop dancer, Mikayla Johnson, age 6, who danced into the hearts of staff and patrons as she danced in the lobby of the Main Library.

7. The pictures of people in the Library drawn by a staff person’s daughters, which I proudly display in my office.

8. The special back door, after hours tour with our Fire Chief‘s delightful four daughters who are avid readers.

9. The Library’s and my special friend Angela Matzelle’s enthusiasm and energy in raising funds and friends for the Library.

10. And all the great staff who accomplished more than they thought they could and did it with a smile.

Oh, and I get to cheat…here is number 11

11. All of our wonderful patrons who know that it means to have a free library available to them and appreciate the resources we provide.

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About ICARUS

What's that you say? Icarus didn't make it? But that's because he flew too close to the sun. What if he'd used better judgment, or at least asked a better reference question, like 'How high can you safely fly if your feathers are glued on with wax?'